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Missouri Tour Day 9 – Windsor to Sedalia

03 Friday Jul 2026

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  4::00 PM

Thank you all for your concern for Dana. He was a little shaky this morning, but now he’s feeling great And he can shift gears. (That’s much more important to him than his slightly oozy knee.)

11:00 AM

My two biggest complaints for today are that the Wagon Wheel was out of orange juice, and we didn’t see any prairie chickens on the prairie. 

It’s been a good day.

Only 20 miles of hard pack to Sedalia.

We passed through the town of Green Ridge, and read their trailhead,. There’s a trailhead about every 10 miles, always a nice stop, usually the site of an old station. And we get to learn the history of all of these little towns.

So it turns out that Pearl White was born in Green Ridge in 1899. And my mother used to sing me a song about Pearl White, because my parents were OLD. 

We stopped at a beautiful lake and met a nice lady with a nice little hyperactive dog named Ruby. We ate a candy bar and drank some Gatorade looking at the lake. 

2:30 PM

This may be the first day in forever that walking was harder than biking. We checked into the Bothwell Hotel, a beautiful 99yo super fancy hotel. Harry Truman stayed there once. We will dine there tonight, because he ate there once, too.

But we’re not there yet. We’re in Taqueria Chilango, on the outskirts of Sedalia. When I looked at the map, I saw this place right next to Bud’s Laundromat, and I had an idea. We walk down Main St., check out the quaint (at least from a short distance) town, eat some tacos, and do the laundry. 

If we had turned right out of the hotel, we would have been on Main St. But we had to turn left. This isn’t quaint. This is just rural poverty. Nobody goes for a stroll here with one very heavy pannier for no good reason. So half-way through the walk, Dana says “I’ll bet both places are closed.” So I was feeling guilty, and my knee hurt (no pain on the bike). And Dana’s sugar was low and his knee was oozing. And I was wondering if we’d had a good reason for this stroll.

They were both open! Phew! So we started a load, and walked to the restaurant. When we left the laundromat, Dana actually had to remind me where the restaurant was (across the street). I can get lost in the outskirts of Sedalia, MO. 🫩

Anyway, the restaurant was air conditioned, and the game was on TV, and the tacos were delicious 😊 But we didn’t eat a lot, we’re looking forward to dinner at the hotel.

Now we’re sitting with an empty pannier, waiting for dryer #18. The air conditioning is better here than it was across the street. I think the walk back will be much more pleasant. 

5:00 PM

Turns out there’s a guest laundry in the hotel. 🤣🤣 Oh, well. I’m glad we had the adventure and got some more exercise. And the tacos were totally worth it 

Missouri Tour Day 8 – Rest Day in Windsor

03 Friday Jul 2026

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I am sitting in the shade, on a chair, in a sundress, watching the world go by at the Windsor Crossroads Motel. Neither of up slept well last night, but Dana reprogrammed his shifter so even though his right shifter is broken he can use the left too change the back gears, and he’s not actively bleeding, so all is good.

FYI, he wrote all of that techie stuff. I’m just glad he fixed his shifter.

We rode about one mile on a wonderfully paved road with no bloody (get it?) panniers to breakfast at the Wagon Wheel.

And who did we see but Kelly and Luke! It’s just happening! When the waitress asked “Where y’all from?”, they said New Mexico and we said Massachusetts.  She was pleasantly surprised. But she’s probably seen it before, because that’s what happens on a bike tour. You’ve known someone for 3 days and you’ve become good friends. We may never see them again, but it’s been nice. 

The waitress took our pictures for her Katy Trail Wall of fame.

Our next short, pleasant ride was to the pharmacy, where we went straight to the first aid aisle. There were only 6 aisles, and they saw Dana’s knee, so even I could find it.

We bought a bunch of stuff for the motel owner, to replenish her supply, and pay it forward. She said someone came in last week with his head cut open. Turns out there’s a hospital next door. If Dana had seen it yesterday, we might have paid a visit.

Then we were finally on the Katy Trail! … where we rode through the State Park, and learned lots of local history. Then a mile back to the hotel. Now that’s what I call a nice day on a bike! 

So, if you are still reading…

After the fall, we washed out the road rash on the trail, but it was getting worse.  At the motel, we hosed off the bikes and the blood. I laid a towel on the bed, so Dana could lie down without bleeding on the bedspread. After his shower I patched him up, but it wasn’t pretty. 

Neither of us really slept last night. I was dehydrated and worried. I think he slept fine unless he moved. His back, ribs, and right knee and shoulder are achy today.

We decided not to ride today. If Dana had wanted to ride 16 miles to Clinton, ring a bell, and then ride 16 miles back – all on gravelsand – I would have. But he did not! Phew! Even with  the button, and without the road rash, I’d still rather not. 

But compared to our day, Kelly and Luke fared worse. Don’t worry, there was no blood.

So their average speed was about 6 mph, because they aren’t Dana and they don’t have buttons. After riding non-stop, not even time for DiMaggio’s, it started getting dark around mile 40. By mile 50 it was dark, they had gotten separated, and their phones were dead. Kelly had made it to their reserved cabin, but somehow Luke had missed the turnoff, and he assumed she was still on the trail. So he ditched the panniers, rode back 10 miles looking for her. Figured he could carry her panniers for her. But he didn’t find her, and he rode 10 miles back. By then, his headlamp had died. He got to the cabin at 11:15 PM. After riding 70 miles. 💪🏆

I am a whiny wimp. And I’m going to have to be ok with that!

Tomorrow we’re continuing on to Sedalia, a nice 20 mile ride, and we’ll be back on schedule.

Missouri Tour Day 7 – Pleasant Hill to Windsor

02 Thursday Jul 2026

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We started our day with breakfast at the cafe with Kelly and Luke. Kelly gave the biscuits a 10 out of 10. She grew up on a farm, so I believe her,

It took a few miles to get on the trail, but they were very pleasant, and we were able to stop at a gas station for Gatorade and Payday bars. Which turns out to have been a good idea, because there were no more services for 40 miles.

The weather today was perfect, and the trail was well shaded. However, all 50 miles of today’s ride was on gravelsand. With every pedal stroke, it ate a little of our tires, and a little more of our souls. Our average speed was 9.3. When I rode without the button, my average speed was 5.6. I admit that, without the button, I would not want to be doing this ride.

Dana said there was a convenience store at mile 30, which we were very much looking forward to. But it was in the town of Chilhowee. Turns out the town is pretty much gone. If the store is still in business, it was closed today. But there was a nice bench in the shade, which was lovely. But I find these dead towns to be very sad.

At mile 40, we came to the town of Leeton, and had lunch at DiAngelo’s American Diner. If you are ever in Leeton, MO, I highly recommend it. I’ve enclosed a picture of the owners, lovely, friendly people serving really good food. Dana had peach cobbler, because he could. 

I was thinking this would be a very short email. Until mile 45.

There are lots of road crossings on the trail, each with a gate slightly wider than a bicycle. Do you see where this is going?  Now, personally, I’m respectful of those things and ride through them very slowly. Spoiler alert: after mile 45, Dana did, too.

But as he went through that fateful gate, he thought that was a good time to check his bike computer. Turns out, it was not. So he hit the gate with his right brake hood, flipped himself around, and went down HARD. Then he said lots of bad words. 

I was afraid he couldn’t get up, but he did. I’ve enclosed a picture of his knee. Other bloody parts are his elbow and a finger, but they pale in comparison. What he’s most upset about, however, is his broken shifter. 

So for the last 5 miles, he was more miserable than me. But the woman at the hotel in Windsor was so nice. She got us peroxide and bandages, and offered to help us tomorrow if we need it. Which we might. 

The plan for tomorrow was to ride 16 miles to Clinton, without the panniers, ring the bell at the start of the Katy trail, then ride back here. But plans may change. Let’s see what happens.